As the flagship band of the Black Rock Coalition, Living Colour fused free jazz, funk, hard rock, and heavy metal into a sound that is uniquely its own. The band's debut album Vivid was released in 1988 and contained the hit single "Cult of Personality," which won a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance. The band's followup Time's Up (1990), garnered more critical acclaim and another Grammy Award. After an extended hiatus in the late '90s, Living Colour reformed in 2000 and released Collideoscope in 2003. Having recently released the critically acclaimed album The Chair In The Doorway (2009), the band is currently preparing material for a new album and tour in 2013.

South Bronx natives Jimi Hazel (guitar) and Rick Skatore (bass) formed 24-7 Spyz ("twenty-four-seven spies") in 1986 and developed an immediate following based on their musical versatility. The group mixes soul, funk, reggae, and R&B with heavy metal and punk - a mix that came to be labeled as heavy metal soul. 24-7 Spyz broke up in 1998 after releasing several albums, including Harder than You (1988), Gumbo Millennium (1990), and the cult classic Strength in Numbers (1992). Reforming in 2003, the group dropped Face the Day (2006), its latest release and first album of original material in over a decade. 2011 saw a reunion of the Strength in Numbers lineup at a show in New York City. The band is now writing songs for a new disc that will be released in 2013.